One of the most significant developments in computer systems has been the development of applications programs which allow users to perform their usual and customary tasks in a manner analogous to the manner in which they performed those tasks without computer systems. Examples of such include the electronic spreadsheet such as Lotus 1-2-3.sup.1, and word processing such as Wang Word processing systems wherein users essentially perform financial calculations or generate documents in much the same manner as when they used paper and pencil or typewriters. The use of applications programs running on computer systems to perform these tasks, however, provided such advantages as greater speed, the ability to rapidly perform more complex calculations, the ability to readily edit the work and the convenience of electronic data storage and retrieval.
Recent years have seen the development and adoption of integrated operating environments, such as Microsoft Windows.sup.2 and New Wave.sup.3, for virtually all computer data processing systems. An integrated operating environment is comprised of operating system functions together with a plurality of other functions, such as user interface and data exchange and integration functions, which may be used in common by applications programs executing in the integrated operating environment. Such operating environments and applications programs provide all of the functions and capabilities originally available to users, together with capabilities that would be virtually impossible before the advent of such systems. These new capabilities include the capability to FNT .sup.1 Lotus and 1-2-3 are trademarks of Lotus Corporation. FNT .sup.2 Microsoft and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. FNT .sup.3 New Wave is a trademark of Hewlett-Packard Corporation. link data, images or text from one document, worksheet or database into another and the ability to combine text and images and even voice and sound annotations into a single document.
Applications programs such as those for creating and editing documents now offer the features and functions to perform virtually any imaginable operation on a document. A recurring problem, however, is that the focus of the applications programs has shifted from expediting the user's work to providing the most extensive possible array of powerful tools for all possible document creation tasks. As a result, current document processing programs now require the users to invest significant time and effort in learning to use these very powerful but very complex assemblages of tools and functions. In effect, the focus has shifted from allowing users to perform their usual work in the usual way to requiring the users to become document processing experts.
While many potential users of such systems could benefit greatly from the speed, convenience and power of current computerized document processing, they have not been able to do so. The burden in time and effort to learn and use current document processing systems exceeds the benefits to be gained from such systems, and would actually hinder their work by taking up time and effort which must be devoted to their primary tasks. At the same time, currently available document processing applications that are simple to learn and use simply do not have the range or power of features and functionality that would benefit these users.
These users are usually highly skilled and trained professionals who have a need for extensive documentation and have specialized documentation requirements, but cannot devote extensive time to the creation and editing of documentation. As a consequence, these users are characterized by the extensive use of paper forms of various types, wherein the users documentation tasks have been reduced, in so far as possible, to filling in blanks, checking boxes and writing short comments by hand. Examples of such users include doctors, medical technicians and nurses, the police, the court system, insurance investigators, inventory controllers, and even the Examiners of the Patent Office.
The primary problem, therefore, is to bring the power, speed, convenience and features of computerized document processing to users who cannot devote significant effort to learning and using computerized document processing programs and who have specialized document processing needs, usually characterized by the use of forms, and in such a manner as to allow the users to perform their usual work in the manner to which they are accustomed.
The present invention provides a solution to these and other problems of the prior art.